As the United States is battling the worst phase of the coronavirus pandemic, projections from the University of Washington's Institute for Health, Metrics, and Evaluation has suggested that the death toll in the country due to COVID-19 could be much higher than December.
According to the model used by researchers who took part in the study, the death toll in January could reach up to 1,50,000 when compared to the record 77,500 in December 2020.
Reasons behind the drastic surge in US coronavirus cases
The daily positive cases reported in the US post the November US presidential elections are much higher than the number of cases reported during the initial summer peak of the pandemic in the country. According to public health experts, the coming months will mark the worst-case scenario in the United States ever since the outbreak of coronavirus.
Public gatherings during Thanksgiving and Christmas have played a crucial role in elevating positive cases in the country. During the extremely cold conditions, most of the gatherings were held indoor by people, and coronavirus might have drastically contracted people in non-ventilated settings.
Mutant coronavirus variant adds up to the worries
In the meantime, a mutant variant of coronavirus with up to 70 per cent more contraction capability than the original strain of coronavirus has been discovered in the United States.
The mutant variant, initially reported in the United Kingdom has already triggered a wave of tension among healthcare experts in the US, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued a warning stating that the new strain could further stress hospitals that are already overwhelmed with coronavirus patients.
Even though the mutant variant is not believed to be any more lethal than the original coronavirus strain, the high infection rate could lead to more cases, which will ultimately increase the death toll in the United States.
According to the latest statistics, there are more than 20.1 million COVID-19 positive cases in the United States, and the death toll has already crossed 3,50,000.
